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“I couldn't wait to be a part of it,” he said.

Ten years later, the retired colonel is as passionate about hockey as ever.

Tonight, Klimas will be in his favorite seat cheering on his favorite team when the Rampage take on the Rockford IceHogs at the AT&T Center.

But it's not just another game. Officials are planning a variety of activities to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Rampage in San Antonio.

The first 5,000 fans will receive a trading card set featuring 10 prominent Rampage players from 2002-present.

A video and photo montage of notable Rampage moments will be shown on the JumboTron, and 10 finalists will be named in a contest in which the eventual winner will receive a free pair of season tickets for the next 10 years.

Klimas and his wife, Pat, are two of 48 fans who have been Rampage season-ticket holders since Day 1.

They were invited to a recent dinner attended by players on the River Walk. Afterward, they all posed for a special team Christmas photo in front of the Alamo.

“We wanted to do something special for them with special benefits,” said Ryan Snider, the team's director of hockey business operations.

Wil and Gloria Drash are part of that group.

The couple not only own season tickets to the Rampage, but the two other teams under the Spurs Sports & Entertainment banner as well — the WNBA's Silver Stars and NBA's Spurs.

“We spend a lot of time at the AT&T Center,” Gloria Drash said.

Like Klimas, the Drashes say hockey has been an acquired taste. They said they didn't know much about the sport until they started going to Iguanas and Dragons games years ago and spent time on the Internet trying to learn some of the terminology.

“We asked a lot of questions at first,” said Wil Drash, whose long, white beard makes him a natural for playing Santa Claus at games. “There's still a lot of it I don't understand. I'm still learning.”

Gloria Drash said she comes to Rampage games “to see the fights and the hard hits.” She and her husband, decked out in Rampage gear, have front-row seats and like to beat on the glass when the players skate in front of them.

The Drashes say they even go to some games of the Austin Toros, the Spurs' NBA Development League team, in Cedar Park.

“I carry a special calendar with all the dates, just so we can keep it all straight,” Gloria Drash said.

Klimas and his wife, Pat, also had season tickets for the Iguanas and Dragons, two former teams that played in San Antonio predominantly during the 1990s.

“I was the fourth season-ticket holder of the Iguanas,” Klimas proudly proclaims.

Pat Klimas said the Rampage games are a “great family activity,” but admits her passions don't run as deep as her husband's.

Klimas said his favorite moment came when the team was an affiliate of the Phoenix Coyotes and Wayne Gretzky — a former coach and owner of the team and widely considered the greatest NHL player ever — attended a reception in San Antonio for season-ticket holders.

Klimas got his picture taken that day with the Stanley Cup.

“I've been a season-ticket holder for 10 years, and plan to be one for the next 10, too,” he said.